Page 38 of Tee the Season
“So you just—what? Decided to leave without giving me the chance to—” I can’t finish the sentence. Can’t admit what I wanted.
“I’m an idiot.” He’s closer now, close enough I see the fear in his eyes mixed with something that looks like hope. “Hays made me see I should have told you. That I was protecting myself by not being honest. Leaving myself an out.”
“An out from what?”
“From this. From you. From the scariest thing I’ve ever done.” His jaw clenches. “But then I realized I don’t want an out. I want you to know the truth, even if it means risking everything.”
My breath catches. “And what’s the truth?”
“That I’m staying,” he says, the words tumbling out as if he can’t stop them. “If you’ll have me. Not because of the job, but because I want quiet mornings and movie nights with you. I want Sunday dinners with Aunt Mae.”
He pauses, and he holds my gaze, reaching for my hand. I don’t pull away. “But mostly?” he continues, his voice full of conviction, “I’m staying because I’m in love with you.”
My world tilts. Rory, the world traveler who never does seconds, who lives out of suitcases, who spent years avoiding settling down—that same man is in love with me?
“I should have led with that,” he says, squeezing my fingers. “Before I said anything else.”
My walls crumble, defenses scattering. “I thought you couldn’t wait to leave. That I was just…a nor’easter distraction.”
“That would’ve been easier,” he scoffs. Then his voice drops as his gaze falls to the floor. “This? You? The way you care for everyone around you. How you build community and create magic out of nothing? How you make me crave things I never thought I’d want.” He looks up, his eyes finding mine. “Tabitha, I don’t deserve you, but hell, you’re the one thing right now I’m sure about.”
Something breaks open in my chest, but reality crashes in. “What about Hays?” The words tumble out. “You’ve been his caddy for years. You can’t just—”
“Hays supports this.” Rory’s thumb traces circles on my hand. “Hell, he’s the one who suggested the job in the first place. Mentioned it our first night here, actually.”
“But the tour—”
“I’ll still caddy at the majors.” He pulls me closer. “We’ve already talked about it. He’ll hire someone for regular events, but the big ones? Those are mine. If I want them.”
“If you want them?” I search his face. “Of course, you want them.”
“I want you more.” Simple. Direct. Devastating.
But the rational side of my brain still has objections. “What if you hate it here? What if six months from now when you’re at the same course doing the same thing and coming home to the same apartment and watching Hays on TV and—” My voice breaks. “What if you wake up and realize this was a mistake? That Starlight Bay isn’t enough. That I’m not—”
His hands frame my face, gentle and sure. “I’ll still travel sometimes, and Hays will always be my best friend. I’ll still be part of the tour, but the difference is, when the tournaments are over, I’ll come home. To you.”
He pauses, thumbs brushing my cheekbones. “And you’re not just ‘enough,’ Tabitha. You’re everything I didn’t know I was looking for but now can’t imagine my life without.”
Tears sting my eyes. I blink them back hard.
“I know it’s crazy,” he continues, voice rough. “Three days snowed in together and I’m standing here telling you I’m in love with you, but—”
“It’s not crazy.” The words are out before I can second-guess them.
He goes still. “What?”
“I’ve never felt about anyone the way I feel about you.”
The words hang between us.
“Not Dave. Not anyone I dated before.” My voice cracks. “I thought maybe I was broken. That I didn’t need anyone else. That I didn’t feel things the way other people do. But then you—”
I can’t finish, but I need to. Have to tell him my truth. How I feel.
“I thought it was just me,” I continue, more vulnerable than I’ve ever been. “I thought I was reading too much into the cabinet repairs and everything you were doing—”
“It wasn’t just you.” His forehead drops to mine. “God, Tabitha. It was never just you. From that night at the wedding—”
